ECOLOGIA BALKANICA 2011, Vol. 3, Issue 1 July 2011 pp. 75-78

Data on Hatchlings of Caucasian Rock , valentini (Boettger, 1892) in Northeastern Anatolia

Yahya Tayhan1 , Kerim Çiçek2, Dinçer Ayaz2, C. Varol Tok3

1 Hakkari University, Health Vocational College, Hakkari, TURKEY 2 Ege University, Faculty of Science, Biology Department, Zoology Section, Bornova, Izmir, TURKEY, E‐mail: [email protected] 3 Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University, Faculty of Science Literature, Biology Department, Zoology Section, Terzioğlu Campus, Çanakkale, TURKEY

Abstract. During our field work in the Tepeler Village (Ardahan, Turkey) on 27th of August, 2010, we observed hatchlings of Darevsika valentini. The mean body length of was found as 28.06±1.14 (25.3 30.4) and the total length as 70.81±3.92 (61.9 81.0). Juveniles were generally observed under stones and those portions of the roots of annual herbaceous plants which remain under stone are also used as shelters for juveniles. Neonates on the southern slopes of the hills could be individually seen and mostly, individuals aggregated [median number of individuals, 6 (115)] and lived in groups.

Key words: Darevskia valentine, hatchlings, Northeastern Anatolia, Turkey.

Introduction the IUCN Red List (TOK et al., 2008) and in Darevskia valentini, Caucasian rock lizard, the list of Annex III of Bern Convention. ranges from the mountainsteppe zones of The inhabits large rock blocks and Armenia to southern Azerbaijan, eastern small stony places on the hills in the Turkey, southwestern Georgia and north subalpine zone. Moreover, it is also western (DAREVSKY, 1967; BAOĞLU & observed in areas with intensive vegetation BARAN, 1977; BANNIKOV et al., 1977; at the border of sloping stony or rocky ANDERSON, 1999; SINDACO et al., 2000; places (DAREVSKY, 1967; BANNIKOV et al., ANANJEVA et al., 2006). In Turkey, the distri 1977; Ilgaz, 2004). The adult morphology of butional range of the species is eastern D. valentini has been studied in detail Anatolia, eastern part of Black Sea (west to (DAREVSKY, 1967; BANNIKOV et al., 1977; Sinop province) and mountains of central Eiselt et al., 1992; Ilgaz, 2004) in its and eastern Anatolia (provinces of Kayseri, distribution site; however, no sufficient Niğde and Đçel), and it is recorded from information is available about juvenile 1,300 to 3,000m a.s.l. (BAOĞLU & BARAN, morphology and ecology. In this study, 1977; ANDERSON, 1999; SINDACO et al., 2000; hatchlings of D. valentini were observed and ILGAZ, 2004; Ananjeva et al., 2006; TOK et al., our observations on the nests, dispersion, 2008). It is classified as the least concern on and some morphometric and colorpattern

© Ecologia Balkanica Union of Scientists in Bulgaria – Plovdiv http://eb.bio.uniplovdiv.bg University of Plovdiv Publishing House Data on hatchlings of Caucasian Rock Lizard, Darevskia valentini (Boettger, 1892)… features of these individuals were the parietal plates found to be laterally presented. pushed are trapezoidal (Fig. 2). The pileus of the specimens is convex upwards. The Materials and methods morphological characteristics of the In our field studies in Ardahan specimens are given in Table 1. (Northeastern Anatolia, Turkey), we observed hatchlings of D. valentini in Tepeler Village (lat.: 41.060104° N, long.: 42.575360°E, 1866 m a.s.l, Fig. 1) 15 km southwestern of Ardahan on August 27, 2010. We noted some habitat characteristics and approximately density of individuals. Fiftythree hatchlings were measured and its color pattern characteristics were recorded. Following morphometric (A) (B) measurements were taken using dial calipers with an accuracy of 0.01 mm: Tail Fig. 2. The view of pileus in hatchling (A) length (TaL): Anal cleft to the tip of the tail; and adult (B) Caucasian rock Head width (HW): At the widest point of the head; Head length (HL): Tip of snout to Table 1. Morphometric measurements of the posterior margin of the ear opening: hatchlings from Tepeler Village (Ardahan, Pileus length (PL): Tip of the snout to the Turkey). [N: number of specimens; SD: posterior margins of the parietals; Pileus Standard deviation; SE: Standard error of width (PW): At the widest point between the mean] the parietal plates; Snoutvent length (SVL): Tip of the snout to the anal cleft; Total body Characters N Mean Min -Max SD SE length (TL): Tip of the snout to the tip of the HL 53 7.44 7.0 8.1 0.29 0.04 tail. Furthermore, some morphometric HW 53 4.70 4.2 5.1 0.19 0.03 indexes and ratios were calculated: Head PL 53 7.08 6.6 7.7 0.28 0.04 index: (HW/HL)*100; Pileus index: PW 53 4.02 3.4 4.5 0.21 0.03 SVL 53 28.06 25.3 30.4 1.14 0.16 (PW/PL)*100; SVL/TaL. Authors have to (HW/HL)*100 53 158.53 146.1 173.5 6.82 0.94 explain how to determine of body length for (PW/PL)*100 53 56.81 52.0 62.5 2.53 0.35 hatchlings in material and method section. TL 32 70.81 61.9 81.0 3.92 0.69 SVL/TaL 32 0.66 0.6 0.7 0.03 0.01

Furthermore, a vitellus cleft occupying 2 or 3 transverse ventral rows manifests itself in the individuals and starts at ventral rows 16 and 18. In 53 individuals, the dorsal ground color is green, and maculation over the head (the pileus always has clear maculation) is very clear in 22 (41.5%), scarcely clear in 28 (52.8%) and unclear in 3 (5.7%) of all the specimens (Fig. 3). No occipital stripe is observed in 27 (51%) of the specimens showing a reticular pattern, whereas there is Fig. 1. Habitat of hatchlings from a clear occipital stripe in the rest of them. Tepeler Village (Ardahan, Turkey). The ventral part is dirty white and the outermost ventral plates have blackish dots. Results and Discussion The tail is lighter green relative to the In the hatchlings of D. valentini, interparietal dorsum. The maculation of the juveniles is and occipital plates are welldeveloped and thinner (primarily the head region) and

76 Yahya Tayhan , Kerim Çiçek, Dinçer Ayaz, C. Varol Tok large and integral dots cover less area as mature individuals were observed in the compared to the adults. Tepeler Village population on August 27. As observed in some populations (DAREVSKY, 1967), this might be due to the quicker development in cold regions or early mating and oviposition in order to complete the development. DAREVSKY (1967) observed that Caucasian rock lizards lay their eggs into rock cracks, under stones and into soil clefts and that female has egglaying site fidelity. In Tepeler Village population as well, juveniles were generally observed under stones and remnants of egg shells were encountered under some stones. This indicates that the species lay its eggs under Fig. 3. Egglaying site and shelters of stones in the place concerned. In addition, juveniles. those portions of the roots of annual herbaceous plants which remain under TERENTEV & CHERNOV (1965) reported stone are also used as both egglaying sites that the oviposition period of D. saxicola is and shelters for juveniles (Fig. 3). from late June to early August and that the During the fieldwork, it was observed females lay 2 to 4 eggs (mean 3). In the that neonates under stones on the southern Armenian population of D. valentini, adults slopes of the hill could be individually seen come out of hibernation at about the end of and mostly, individuals aggregated [median April and at the beginning of May and lay number of individuals, 6 (115)] and lived in eggs at around the end of June and in the groups (Fig. 4). In this way, individuals can midst of July (DAREVSKY, 1967). ILGAZ more easily perform their daily functions, (2004) stated that May and June are the such as finding a prey, balancing the body breeding period of D. valentini. According to temperature, and protection from their DAREVSKY (1967), the average clutch size of potential enemies. It was striking that these females is 5.2 (range= 3 – 8) and its egg size sites were at the same time egglaying sites. is 14.5x8.5mm. In the Crimean population of Darevskia saxicola, juveniles hatch from late August to early September and the size of neonates is 25 mm and reaches 31 mm by the next spring (TERENTEV & CHERNOV, 1965). Hatchlings start to appear at the end of August and at the beginning of September, and their body lengths range from 26 to 27 mm after 55to65day incubation depending on temperature (DAREVSKY, 1967). In the hatchlings of the Tepeler Village population, the mean body length was found as 28.06±1.14 (25.3 30.4) and the total length as 70.81±3.92 (61.9 81.0). Our observations also support the fact that oviposition period resembles that of the Fig. 4. Aggregation of five Caucasian rock Armenian population. They hatch at around lizards from Tepeler Village (Ardahan, the end of August and at the beginning of Turkey). September in Armenia, while slightly

77 Data on hatchlings of Caucasian Rock Lizard, Darevskia valentini (Boettger, 1892)…

Acknowledgements ILGAZ Ç. 2004. Doğu Karadeniz Bölgesi'ndeki This study partly financially supported (Trabzon, Rize, Artvin ve Ardahan) kaya by TUBĐTAK [Project number: 108T559]. We kertenkelelerinin sistematik durumu, are indebted TUBITAK for financial yayılıı ve ekolojisi üzerine aratırmalar support. (Sauria: ) . Ph.D. thesis, Ege University Graduate School of Natural References and Applied Sciences, 408 pp. (in ANANJEVA N.B., N.L. ORLOV , R.G. Turkish) KHALIKOV , I.S. DAREVSKY , S.A. DAREVSKY I.S. 1967. Rock lizards of the RYABOV , A. BARABANOV . 2006. An atlas Caucasus . Leningrad. Nauka. 214 p. [in of the of northern Eurasia: Russian]. taxonomic diversity, distribution, SINDACO R., A. VENCHI . G.M. CARPANETO . conservation status . SofiaMoscow. M. BOLOGNA . 2000. The reptiles of Pentsoft Series Faunistica No: 47. 245 Anatolia: A checklist and p. zoogeographical analysis. – ANDERSON S.C. 1999. The Lizards of Iran . Biogeographia, 21: 441 554. Missouri, USA. St. Louis: Society for TERENTEV P.V., S.A. CHERNOV . 1965. Key to the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. Amphibians and Reptiles [of the USSR ]. 442 p. Jerusalem. Israel Program for Scientific BANNIKOV A.G., I.S. DAREVSKY . V.G. Translations. 315 pp. ISCHCHENKO . A.K. RUSTAMOV . N.N. TOK C.V., Đ.H. UGURTA . M. SEVINÇ . W. SZCZERBAK . 1977. Guide to Amphibians BÖHME . P. CROCHET . B. TURIYEV . U. and Reptiles of the USSR Fauna . KAYA . 2008. Darevskia valentini . In: Moscow. Prosvetscheniye. 414 p. (in IUCN 2010. IUCN Red List of Russian). Threatened Species. Version 2010.2. BAOĞLU M., Đ. BARAN . 1977. Türkiye [http://www.iucnredlist.org]. Sürüngenleri, Kısım I. Kaplumbağa ve Accessed: 20 December 2010. Kertenkeleler [The reptiles of Turkey, part I. The turtles and lizards] . Bornova Đzmir. Ege Üniversitesi Fen Fakültesi Kitaplar Serisi no: 76, Đlker Matbaası. 272 p. (in Turkish). EISELT J., I. DAREVSKY , J. SCHMIDTLER . 1992. Untersuchungen an Felscidechsen (Lacerta saxicola Kornples) in der östlichcn Turkei: I . L,acerta valentini Boettger. Ann. Naturhist. Mus. Wien, Received: 17.01.2011 93(B): 18. Accepted: 27.04.2011

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